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Monday, 9 December 2013

Microsoft developing 'smart bra'

There
has been a lot of talk this year about how wearable devices like the Samsung
Galaxy Gear smartwatch, Nike FuelBand and Google Glass are leading a new wave
in consumer electronics. Last month, Sony even filed a patent for a 'SmartWig' that
could provide sat-nav style directions or monitor your health.

Now
Microsoft is taking the wearables trend to a whole new level, with a 'smart
bra' that can measure your emotional state, cross reference this with your diet
patterns and send alerts to your smartphone when you are at high risk of
over-eating.

The
smart bra is embedded with sensors that measure heart rate and respiration,
skin conductance and movement. This data is then sent to a mobile phone
application using Bluetooth.

In
the research paper, the scientists explain that the bra form factor was chosen
because it allows the sensors to sit close to the heart. The sensors are
embedded in conductive pads which sit at the centre of the user's sternum, on
each side of their ribs and in the bra cup, just under the breast.

The
scientists were then able to correlate this real-time data with historical
information about the wearer's emotional eating patterns, and trigger an
intervention via their mobile phone before they start comfort-eating.

Participants
wore the bra sensing system and reported their emotions for about 4-6 hours a
day over a period of approximately four days. The scientists admitted that it
was very tedious for participants to wear the prototyped sensing system, as the
boards had to be recharged every 3-4 hours, requiring them to remove their
bras.

"Based
on these results, we conclude that building a wearable, physiological system is
feasible," the scientists said. "However, we will continue to explore
how to build a robust, real-world system that stands up to every day challenges
with regards to battery life, comfortability, and being suitable for both men
and women."